Sports Roundup: Men’s Hockey Set to Play in NCAA Tournament

For the third time in program history, Penn State’s men’s hockey team will be playing in the NCAA tournament.

Earning an at-large bid and No. 2 seed for the first time ever, the Nittany Lions will serve as the site host for the Allentown Regional where they’ll face off against Michigan Tech at 5 p.m. on Friday at the PPL Center.

The game, which can be seen on ESPNU, is the first-ever matchup between the two schools. In the other regional semifinal, top-seeded Michigan will play against Colgate.

The Nittany Lions are 21-15-1 on the season and making their first NCAA appearance since 2018. The winners of Friday’s two games will face off Sunday at 6:30 p.m. with a trip to the Frozen Four on the line.

Women’s Hockey Finishes Season

Penn State’s women’s hockey team took part in the NCAA tournament earlier this month in Columbus, Ohio.

There, the Lions fell 3-2 to No. 8 Quinnipiac in three overtimes.

Goals by Kiara Zanon and Olivia Wallin in the second period gave No. 10 Penn State a 2-1 lead entering the third period.

However, Quinnipiac equalized with about seven minutes to go and then netted a goal in the third overtime, capping the second-longest women’s NCAA tournament game ever.

The Nittany Lions finished the year 27-9-2 and carried an 18-game unbeaten streak from November until the tournament loss.

Men’s Volleyball Continues to Impress

With EIVA tournament action fast approaching, Penn State’s men’s volleyball team has built an impressive regular season resume.

The Nittany Lions are currently 18-2 ahead of a home match on Tuesday against Ohio State.

Currently ranked No. 2, the Lions were most impressive in a Spring Break trip to Honolulu.

There, Penn State fell in a heartbreaking 3-2 match to then-No. 2 and current-No. 1 UCLA. However, the Lions rallied to knock off then-No. 1 and host Hawaii 3-1.

That victory snapped a 25-match overall winning streak for Hawaii and a 29-match home winning streak. It was Penn State’s first win against a top-ranked team since 2017.

The Lions also knocked off then No. 6 UC Irvine in the days immediately before flying to the islands.

Women’s Lacrosse Earns Upset Win

Penn State pulled a shocker over the weekend in women’s lacrosse as the No. 25 Lions knocked off No. 14 Princeton by a score of 16-14.

It was the second win this year against a ranked team for the Lions, who improved to 7-2.

Kristin O’Neill and Gretchen Gilmore each scored six goals apiece for Penn State, who will return to action this week on Tuesday at Pittsburgh.